Half of potential new drivers are failing their theory test – just as thousands of road signs around the country are facing the axe after they were labelled “humiliating”.

A report by Department for Transport has called for a number of traffic signs to be binned after it found the overuse of signage in the UK is too complicated.

And with over 1.9million potential drivers taking their theory test during the last yearly set of figures reported, nearly half of them failed the exam leading to suggestions some signs should be canned.

Information provided by the Driving Vehicle Standards Agency reveals that from April 2016 to March 2017 a staggering 1,952,226 people took their theory test with 950,210 people passing – a success rate of 48.7%. That’s slightly down on the previous year of 49.2%.

And it was female drivers who came out on top in the battle of the sexes as women aged 17+ had a pass percentage of 50.7%, compared to men who had a lower 46.8%.

But you’d be wrong to think it is the young learners who fail miserably.

Incredibly, the highest percentage of women passing was those in the age bracket of 17 with a 54.1% success whilst men had their highest pass rate aged 33 with a 50.3%. Strangely, the next highest success rate for women was also those aged 33, with a 53.7% average.

Women also came out on top in the retirement stakes as over 1,783 of those taking their theory test decided to embark on their driving licence aged 61 plus, with 870 of those passing leaving an impressive 48.8 average whilst 1,818 men sat the exam with the same amount passing (870) leaving a 47.9% pass rate.

The written £23 theory test for cars was introduced on 1 July 1996 when it replaced questions asked about the Highway Code during the practical test. The exam now consists of 50 multiple-choice questions (43/50 to pass) followed by a skills test involving 75 hazard perception situations (44/75 to pass).

The 1,002,016 people who failed during the past year gained the government over £23 million in extra revenue based on the statistics.

Scrapcarcomparison.co.uk, a UK company that deals with the purchase thousands of written-off cars, says data backs up people’s lack of understanding on the roads.

“Many cars are written off because people misjudge a situation on the road. Data collected by our team shows that many of our customers have admitted making a wrong decision which caused an accident. With the theory exam only being introduced in 1996 it would make interesting reading as to how many people would pass it having never taken it!”